


turtles

by theyeetomyhawhawhaw



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Boyfriends, BoyxBoy, Cute, Fluff, Innocent Niall, M/M, No Angst, No Sex, No Smut, Poor Niall Horan, Whipped Louis, aquariuam, harry styles with animals, niall horan is single, no beta we die like men, they are all angels, whipped zayn, zayn and louis are whipped
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:41:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22065697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theyeetomyhawhawhaw/pseuds/theyeetomyhawhawhaw
Summary: "Y'know, the first thing I noticed about you was your dimples and curls, followed by how incredibly slow you talked, followed by how turtle-green your eyes were, and even if Zayn didn't tell me your favourite animal was the turtle, I still would've guessed it."ORHarry works at an aquarium and meets Louis. Louis starts developing a crush, alongside Zayn who has a crush on Liam. Niall is still a single pringle and ready to mingle.
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan & Zayn Malik & Liam Payne & Harry Styles & Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik/Liam Payne
Comments: 4
Kudos: 45





	turtles

Louis Tomlinson had never liked aquariums. They smelled of fish and were always crowded with young kids who ran around, screeching their lungs out. Once, a ghastly child threw up all over his trousers. Another time, a worker accidentally spilled a whole bucket of dead fish onto his shirt.

And do keep in mind that this all happened in the span of one visit.

It was safe to say that after his first time going to the wretched place, he never wanted to return.

But a cruel twist of fate made it so that the local marine rescue center had been Niall's favourite place to visit. And of course, no walking soul on this Earth had the heart to deny Niall Horan _anything_. It didn't mean Louis didn't try though...

The boy tried acting busy when Niall had asked, turning on the vacuum cleaner in the cafeteria he worked at. "What?" He shouted over the loud whirring as the mechanic came to life. "I can't hear you! Talk later!"

Niall unplugged the wire. "I was asking if you could join me and Zayn to visit the aquarium tomorrow."

Louis started on a different tactic. He whipped his phone out, pretending to scroll through his calender. "Oh, what a shame, I have to work tomorrow," he attempted to look as guilty as possible. "Sorry, Nialler. Guess it's just you and Zayn."

"Your phone isn't even turned on," the younger boy peered over at the blank screen. He raised an eyebrow. "Plus, you don't sing on Sundays. You _always_ take a leave from work because 'every man deserves a break at least once every week'."

 _Damn, he's starting to throw my own quotes back at me now?_ Louis panicked internally. Up till this point, he was pretty sure he was about to die from stress before he could even get home from work. "I'm sick." He coughed into his sleeve.

The Irish tilted his head, "So, you're able to attend a surfing competition while running a high fever, but you won't even follow your best lad to the aquarium because of _one measly cough_?"

Louis resorted to his last tactic: argue his way out.

"Why can't you go with Zayn?" He demanded, keeping the not-so-helpful vacuum away.

Niall's eyes fell to the floor. "He's only going for some emcee named Liam," he mumbled, pouting. "There's no one to talk to anymore - all he does is stare! And it's getting really, really creepy."

The brown-haired boy sighed.

"Please, Tommo?"

He flashed the older boy his puppy dog eyes.

_Damn it!_

Louis bit his tongue. "Fine! Fine, fine, fine!" He snapped, internally smiling when Niall broke into an award-winning megawatt grin. "But," the boy demanded, "you're in charge of making sure no bloke dirties my clothes."

Niall laughed. "Aye aye, captain!" He gave a quick salute.

"Damn you and manipulative ways," Louis stuck his tongue out at Niall, grumbling about how he was supposed to be lazing around at home instead of going to some fish market.

Yet somehow, he couldn't wipe the grin off his face.

~

Perhaps it was due to the fact that he had an early night (for once!), but Louis woke up feeling better than ever. The boy was so high up on cloud nine that not even his dreaded visit to the marine center was able to dampen his mood.

Niall had to slap Louis twice to get him to stop belting the lyrics of "Under the Sea" out loud.

Zayn had to physically restrain Louis from charging into the gift shop and buying every single "Save the Turtles!" merchandise that they had.

The boys took turn babysitting the blue-eyed terror - which was ironic considering that _Louis_ was the one who was supposed to make sure they refrained from doing things which will surely cause their future selves embarrassment. By midday, the humidity in the air and stench managed to bring the oldest boy back down to Earth.

"I'm hungry," Louis whined as he got dragged to the starfish section.

Zayn snapped a picture of a beaming Niall pointing to the creature. "Louis, you just had a chocolate waffle."

Louis pouted.

"'What do you call a fake starfish?'" Niall read off the small sign containing jokes that were bound to make someone rethink their life choices.

"Star-ti-fish-al!"

"That was a bit of a stretch," Louis muttered dryly.

"Like me in yoga this morning," Zayn snickered, highfiving Niall and snapping a picture of an unamused Louis.

The boy linked his arms around his two friends, dragging them away from the exhibit and into an elevator. "Tell you what - we watch the dolphin show that Zayn is _dying_ to see, then go back to my place and binge-watch all the Disney movies I have. Sounds good?"

Zayn flushed. "It's not my fault Liam Payne's so fucking hot," he mumbled, avoiding eye contact. Louis and Niall shared a smug smile.

"Ah, young love."

~

The three boys barely managed to squeeze past the crowd of screaming kids, waddling through the mass of squished bodies until they found seats that they were comfortable with - which wasn't an easy feat.

Niall wanted to be in the splash zone.

Louis wanted to sit as far away from the water as possible, claiming that "God knows what bacteria is in there" before arguing his case to sit nearer to the exit.

Zayn just wanted be somewhere where he had a good view of Liam.

Eventually, the boys came to a compromise. They'd sit where the handlers and Liam would be facing, with Niall sitting _just_ toward the end of the splash zone and the two older boys sitting right behind him, out of the water's way.

It was a small show, considering it was a small marine centre, but it was always filled up with enthusiastic kids and adults alike. The music died down and a brown-haired boy made his way up to the small platform.

Zayn squeezed Louis' arm, his entire frame literally trembling with excitement.

"Welcome, ladies and gents, to our humble marine center! Over here, we do much more than just have shows and exhibits! These very dolphins that will perform for you today are rescues here, and when they're fully recovered, they will be returned to their natural habitat."

His voice echoed around the area, effectively shutting everyone up.

Zayn sighed fondly, leaning against Louis' shoulder. "Isn't he just stunning?"

Louis rolled his eyes.

Niall turned around to gag at the boy.

Liam continued. "I'm Liam Payne and I'll be your emcee for today's show - it's very nice to meet you!" The crowd whooped and the boy waved, a giant smile gracing his face. "Now, let's all give a round of applause for our personal dolphin trainer - Mr. Harry Styles!"

The crowd screamed.

Louis watched on curiously - the last time he's been here (which was the first time he's been here), the personal trainer was certainly not Harry Styles. It was some guy named Dan - or was it Bob? - who never failed to make the kids in the audience giggle. Fun guy, he was.

The boy found himself wondering if Harry would be able to live up to that.

Another moment passed.

Everyone waited.

"Harry Styles!" Liam hyped up the crowd, whooping as a figure ran onto the platform, waving.

The curly-haired boy smiled, dimples (as deep as the Grand fucking Canyon) appearing on both cheeks. He took the microphone handed over to him, panting. "Sorry, I had to go for a wee and the toilets are ages away."

Louis blinked.

The crowd roared, screaming.

Harry Styles didn't make the kids giggle. He made every man's boxers rise and every woman's panties drop. He made every child have highass expectations when it came to the world of dating.

"Unbelievable," the blue-eyed boy breathed, his gaze still trained on Harry.

Zayn huffed from beside him. "I _know_ , right? He talks like a bloody turtle!"

Louis scowled. "Turtles don't talk, Zayn."

"Well, he talks as slow as one."

"Shut up, at least pronounces his words properly."

"Vas that supposed to mean?" His Bradfort accent shining through.

Louis raised his eyebrows.

Zayn pouted. "You can't _seriously_ be attacking me for that!"

Niall turned around to shush them, causing both boys to turn bright red as the people seated near them glared. Louis returned his attention to the dimpled boy, who was now starting to open a small water gate.

A small bottlenose dolphin shot out of the water, causing the crowd to start clapping. "This is Georgia, lads." Harry smiled into the microphone. "She was rescued two years ago - we found her stranded on the beach, unconscious after - what we guessed would be - a collision with a boat.

"Georgia was severely underweight when we rescued her and is staying with us in order to get her weight back to a healthy range. With the amount of eating she's been doing, she's due to be released in a few months time. Aren't ya?" He cooed at the dolphin.

She popped her head of the water, clicking and nodding her head. The crowd melted.

"Still talks like a turtle," Zayn muttered, crossing his arm indignantly. "He talks like a turtle, has turtle-green eyes - it's no wonder his favourite animal is the turtle."

Louis choked on his saliva. "Should I be concerned that you know all this? Because, frankly, your knowledge is frightenin' me."

The Bradford boy winked and placed his index finger on his lips, gesturing back to the stage, where Harry had passed the microphone back to Liam before giving a flawless dive, barely making a splash as he descended into the water. The boy resurfaced soon after, pushing the curls out of his eyes and running a hand down the dolphin's smooth side.

Liam continued to take over, reciting his well-prepared speech as Harry showcased _exactly_ how intelligent dolphins were.

Zayn and Louis clung on to each other, whispering frantically whenever one of the boys did something adorably out of character. When the show was over, they stayed back, (totally not) creepily watching as the two boys packed up.

Niall sighed. Who would've known he ended up unknowingly matchmaking two of his best lads? The bigger question was: which sane soul would he bring with him to the aquarium? He sighed again.

"Lads," Louis announced as they got into the car. "We're going to the marine centre tomorrow."

~

And so, Zayn and Louis always made time to watch at least one show every day - be it after work or during working hours. If they skipped work for the prospect of a crush, well, no one else had to know.

Niall had been miserable, always calling someone else to join them on their expeditions so he had someone to talk to without the conversation being turned to a _I want to fuck my crush_ discussion. As a result, he oftened backed out of said field trips, staying home and playing his guitar to amuse himself.

The two boys always sat in the same seats, and always made sure that they were on time - if not, earlier than the showtime - so that they didn't have to fight with anyone over their preferred position.

Louis always insisted on leaving as soon as the show ended, embarrassed and, frankly, quite scared of the prospect of having to explain his creepy stalking if he were to bump into Harry by accident.

Zayn argued back with the older boy, never failing to make - quite valid - excuses as to why he should up his chances of meeting Liam.

The arguement never ended.

"Stop! Let go of me, you bloody turtle!" Louis swatted at Zayn's iron grip on his arm, resisting as the taller boy dragged him closer backstage.

Zayn rolled his eyes. "Was that supposed to be an _insult_?"

"Bloody hell! What the _fuck_ is up with you today?"

"Don't be a wuss, Tommo. It's been, what, a month since we've been creepily staring at them, it's time to get a move on,"

Louis very visibly startled. He came to a complete stop, legs shaking. "N-no, you can't be serious. Besides, the centre's closing soon, we should _really_ go."

"It's nothing to be afraid of; we'll just pop in backstage and tell them how much we've enjoyed their show!" Zayn smiled.

"The sign says 'out of bounds to unauthorised personal', Malik. And I'm _pretty sure_ two pervertic, psychotic teenagers who just-so-happen to be present at a show everyday don't qualify as 'authorised personal'."

Zayn scoffed. "We are _not_ pervertic or phsycotic. We just know how to appreciate a good view."

They were past the blue curtains now. Buckets that smelled of fish were stacked up in a corner. A deflated beach ball rested against a chair. Louis shied away from the props, pressing his body closer to Zayn. "I still don't think this is a good idea," he whispered. "If we get caught, we're dead!"

"Oh, stop being such a drama queen."

"They're gonna' think we're thieves!" Louis hissed.

"Oh, please, even if we were thieves, what would we steal - a _beach ball_? What's the worst that can happen?"

Before the blue-eyed boy could answer, a voice hollered, "Oi!" Their heads snapped toward the sound. "What're ya' doing 'ere? This place is out of bounds to unauthorised personal!" The security guard shone a flashlight on them.

Louis gave Zayn a look that very clearly meant _fuck you_.

Zayn looked back with wide eyes. "Run."

The two boys booked it across the floor, scrambling go search for an exit as they whipped their heads around so fast, Louis was afraid he might suffer from a whiplash.

"Hey! Stop there!"

"Split up!" Zayn yelled, his longer legs doing him wonders compared to Louis.

The other boy looked incredulous. " _What_? You never split up! Haven't you watched every single horror movie in existence to know that?"

Zayn scowled. "Then give me an idea!"

"My idea was to go home and never step foot in here!" Louis practically screamed back, working twice as hard to keep pace with Zayn.

The security guard was still behind them, quick on his feet. The flashlight beam swung around madly. Louis swore he saw a puddle of red liquid on the floor.

"You're a bloody dumbass!" He shouted again.

"Tell me something I _don't_ know!"

A tense silence fell between them, occasionally interrupted as Louis turned his head around, only to see the security guard still chasing them. He squeaked, urging himself to run faster. Once they made it into his car, they'd be safe.

_Good God, how big was this backstage, anyway?_

From beside Louis, Zayn screeched to a halt.

The boy turned his head around, staring at his friend. "Zayn! C'mon, let's go! He's catching up and I don't want to be put in jail!"

"Louis, you should, uh, turn your head back 'round."

_What?_

He did as he was told, jumping when a familiar pair of green eyes - this time, they were confused instead of their regular happy - stared back at him. Louis let out a surprised squeak as he forced himself to stop, narrowly missing bumping into the frame before him.

"What's going on in here?"

Louis gulped, taking in the reality of the situation. _Oh God, he's going to think I'm a crazy guy. All because of Zayn fucking Malik; ugh!_

Harry studied Louis' shocked expression to Zayn's panting to the security guard, who was still running towards them.

"Harry! Didn't think you'd still be here!" The man in uniform showed to a walk, coming up to the group.

Louis flinched away. Zayn backed up.

The curly-haired boy smiled. "I had a shower and realised I left my phone back in here. What's going on?" He directed the question to everyone.

"Ah, I caught these two buggers wandering backstage. 'Had to chase 'em down. I'll bring 'em to management now, a'ight?"

Harry caught the pleading look Louis shot him. He cleared his throat. "That won't be necessary, John, thank you. I, uh, asked them to come backstage to help me look for my phone. These are my friends, Louis and uh... Ringo."

Zayn visibly cringed.

John bought the story. "Ah, I see. Probably startled you lads when I chased ya', didn't I? Pardon me,"

Louis forced on a shaky smile.

The guard tipped his hat. "Well, goodnight, boys. Harry, I'll see ya' tomorrow, hm?"

Harry nodded.

He walked away, whistling as he went.

"Sorry," the green-eyed boy apologised. "I heard you," he gestured to Zayn, "say his named but I didn't catch yours."

Zayn shrugged and grinned. "I'm Zayn. Thanks for, uh, saving us."

Harry smiled.

Louis was still trembling where he stood.

"Hey, you're the boy who comes to every show!" Harry beamed, nudging Louis, who looked dangerously close to collapsing at any moment.

The blue-eyed boy widened his eyes. "You n-noticed?" He stammered, blinking rapidly.

"'Course! It's heartwarming to always see you there, Louis. Thanks for coming." He made a move to hug the boy, letting Louis wrap his arm around his waist - albeit slowly and quite hesitantly - before fully enveloping him.

Harry's wet curls tickled Louis' ear and the smell of vanilla and cinnamon with a hint of the ocean filled his nose. _What a_ _delightful_ _smell._

Zayn cleared his throat. "Louis, shall we go?"

Harry pulled away, letting his hand linger for a while on the small of Louis' back. The latter grinned cheekily, whispering, "He's salty 'cause he didn't get to see Liam."

He was equally as quiet. "I suppose we'll have to set them up then. Tomorrow?"

Louis smiled, letting himself get dragged away by Zayn. "Tomorrow."

~

"And that, Dusty, was how I met your dad."

The cat blinked innocently up at the boy, pawing at his arm and demanding to be scratched. Harry obliged, laughing.

He hummed, his soft voice mixing with Dusty's content purrs. "Do you think your dad will ever guess that I only went backstage all those years ago only because I saw him enter?"

Dusty meowed.

Harry scoffed hastily, "Dusty! I was _not_ spying on him! Don't spread rumours like that, young man."

The cat trilled, rubbing his head against Harry's still hand.

"Okay," he drawed out, "So maybe I only stayed back to see if I could talk to him, so what?" Harry squealed, hugging the cat close to his chest. "And I actually _did_ end up talking to him! Dusty, it's fate!"

He giggled dizzily, as if he was still the sixteen-year-old boy with short curls who had noticed the blue-eyed angel sitting in those seats.

"What's so funny?"

Harry jumped.

Dusty made a startled noise, gracefully leaping away from the boy's arms.

Louis' brown quiff appeared. He grinned as he took the spot next to Harry, squishing himself as close as to the boy as possible. Harry relaxed into his touch, watching as Dusty hopped back onto the couch, nuzzling his way into Louis' side.

"Dusty was cranky again," the boy lied, smiling.

Louis pressed a kiss to Harry's cheek, right where his dimple was showing, giving him a knowing grin. He sighed happily. "Y'know, I'm glad Zayn dragged me to backstage."

The green-eyed boy laughed. "I'm glad John decided to chase the both of you down."

"I _loathed_ anything to do with aquariums." Louis sighed, resting his head on his boyfriend's chest.

Harry felt his heart stop.

_Was... was this his way to break up?_

Louis continued, nuzzling his face into the material of his shirt. "But I saw you and heard you telling the crowd about how you had to wee, and I had some weird feeling that watching a particular dolphin show would be some sacred religious that I'll be doing."

Harry laughed, playing with the brown baby hair on the nape of the boy's neck. They stayed in a comfortable silence, with Louis slowly nodding off to the hushed humming of Harry.

"Hey, Lou?"

The older boy barely opened his eyes, his long eyelashes resting heavily on his high cheekbones. "Yes, love?" Louis' voice had been thick with sleep, his stronger accent making it almost impossible to understand his words.

"I love you."

"I love you, too, Haz. Now, carry me to bed." Louis grinned cheekily, cracking an eye open. He pulled himself off the younger boy's chest, only to have Harry get up from his spot and scoop him into his arms again. "I'm really glad you decided to stalk me, 'arry. Y'know, the first thing I noticed about you was your dimples and curls, followed by how incredibly _slow_ you talked, followed by how turtle-green your eyes were, and even if Zayn didn't tell me your favourite animal was the turtle, I still would've guessed it." The boy yawned again, smiling lazily as Harry's cheeks turned a warm shade of pink.

He turned to face him, allowing himself to be little spoon, just for that night.

Harry huffed lightly, pressing his lips lightly against Louis'. "You're a prick, y'know that?"

Louis grinned against Harry's mouth. "But I'm _your prick_ so you'll have to deal with it for the rest of your life." The younger boy hummed his agreement, letting his boyfriend play with his curls as his mind shot somewhere to the near future.

And that near future will have something to do with a certain velvet box tucked away safely in his bag.

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this on a whim oops but hope you liked it HAHA thanks for reading this :") im not sure if i shld write an extra part for when harry proposes hmmmm shld i? constructive criticism is always appreciated <3


End file.
